ACTIVE AEROELASTIC WING F/A-18 ON DISPLAY AT THREE MIDWEST AIR SHOWS
July 9, 2003
Release: 03-38
NASA’s Active Aeroelastic Wing (AAW) F/A-18A Hornet, the first aircraft to bear the official “Centennial of Flight” logo, will be on display at three major Midwest air shows from mid-July through early August.
The modified jet fighter is currently in a flight research program to investigate active control of flexible wings for enhanced maneuverability at NASA’s Dryden Flight Research Center at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. A joint program of the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), NASA Dryden and Boeing Phantom Works, AAW seeks to demonstrate improved aircraft roll control through aerodynamically induced wing twist on a full-scale manned supersonic aircraft-essentially a 21st century, high-tech update of the primitive wing-warping control system devised by the Wright brothers for their 1903 Wright Flyer. Among other benefits, the concept could allow lighter-weight wings for better maneuverability for future high-performance military aircraft.
The AAW test aircraft will be featured as part of NASA’s Centennial of Flight exhibit at the Dayton International Air Show at Dayton International Airport, Dayton, Ohio, July 17 – 20. The modified F/A-18 will be parked in the static aircraft display area near the main air show entrance.
Following its appearance at Dayton, the AAW F/A-18A will head to Grissom Air Reserve Base north of Kokomo, Ind., for display at the Grissom Community Air Show July 26-27. It will be located in Hangar 200 at the main entrance to the air show, directly across from the public parking area.
The final stop on the Midwest air show circuit for the NASA research aircraft will be at Wittman Regional Airport in Oshkosh, Wis., for the Experimental Aircraft Association’s AirVenture 2003. The highly instrumented research craft will be displayed at AeroShell Square (west ramp) adjacent to the “Countdown to Kittyhawk” pavilion at AirVenture from July 29 through Aug. 4.
Several NASA, AFRL and Boeing Phantom Works AAW program personnel will be on hand at the Dayton venue July 16 – 20 to discuss the program with news media. Among those available for media interviews will be NASA Dryden project managers Larry Myers and Denis Bessette, chief engineer David Voracek, and project pilots Dana Purifoy and Richard Ewers. Boeing program managers David Riley and James Guffey and AFRL program managers Peter Flick and Ed Pendleton will also be available for media queries at various times during the Dayton event. The NASA AAW personnel will also be available for media interviews at the Grissom AFB and EAA AirVenture shows.
Media representatives desiring interviews with AAW program staff at the Dayton air show should contact Leslie Williams of NASA Dryden public affairs at (661) 276-3893 by July 11 or at (661) 810-4977 after that date, or Larine Barr of AFRL public affairs at (937) 656-9010. Williams will also be the AAW media liaison at the Grissom air show. Media wishing to interview AAW personnel at EAA AirVenture 2003 should contact Alan Brown at NASA Dryden public affairs at (661) 276-2665 by July 24, or at (661) 810-4978 after that date.
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Note to Editors: High-resolution photos of NASA’s AAW F/A-18A suitable for publication are available at: /centers/dfrc/Gallery/Photo/AAW/index.html